Triangles
by Miss-Nami-Shiawase
Summary: Kat is in love with Doggie, who is married to Isinia. However, a moral dilemma ends with Kat being fired! Bridge is determined to get to the bottom of things! While Isinia is in this I am a full advocate of Cruger/Kat love. This was mostly a small idea that occurred to me because Isinia was so underwritten yet inserted into the show in such an odd way. Please review, and enjoy!
1. Triangles

_Triangles_

"Isinia?" Kat stopped dead, staring at the form of her best friend's wife leaving his room with a duffle bag. "Isinia, what are you doing? Where are you going?"

Isinia sighed to herself. She had almost made it out without being spotted, but she should have guessed Doggie's friend Kat would find her. She was a bit fond of the young Felid woman, as much as she also resented her. Although she had never told Doggie, she couldn't help but feel a little jealous of the obvious connection between her husband and the young lady. Still, that wasn't her reason for leaving. "Kat, you should leave this matter be."

"Isinia, where are you going?" Kat asked again, firmer, walking in front of her.

"I'm leaving," Isinia bit back, frustrated and impatient. She didn't want to risk running into Doggie. "Now, please move."

"W–what?—no!" Kat held her arm out to the doorframe, blocking the older woman. "This doesn't make any sense, Isinia, you just got back."

"Katherine, I cannot stay here. I can't do this—Doggie is a wonderful man but we're both too different now!" Isinia pressed, trying to get Kat to understand. "It's not going to work, me being here. I'm a huge reminder of destruction to Doggie and he's a huge reminder to me of all that I missed out on. I spent forty years in hell, do you know what that's like?"

"He does; he spent forty years of giving himself hell for losing you! He has been looking for you and fighting for you for years so why would you leave?!" Kat raised her voice, angry at how she could just be up and leaving. "Why would you break his heart again?!"

"Look," Isinia barked, voice turning cold. "You might not know what I'm talking about now, but you'll learn one day. One day you'll wake up...you'll wake up and everything will be different. Your world will have changed too much while your back was turned and you won't belong there anymore. You will have lost everything."

"Isinia, I don't know what you went through, but we can help. What ever it is, PTSD, Stockholm, we can help you," Kat tried to reach out but Isinia recoiled and growled, baring her fangs. "Isinia...please don't do this."

"I'm going, Katherine, and you can't stop me. I can't stay here, it's just too painful," Isinia shoved her way past Kat with an angry growl. "Tell Doggie not to contact me."

"Isinia!" Kat tried to catch her but Isinia spun around, clawing her hand. Kat hissed and held her hand. "Okay, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have startled you like that."

"Kat, you can't stop me from this. It's not right to be back here," Isinia shook her head. "Doggie and I were happy in the past but now is different. He's not the same Anubis I married and I...I can't be the same person as back then. If you come after me again, I'll do more than scratch you."

"Why are you leaving him?" Kat asked in a cold voice, holding her bleeding hand.

"I have to leave because if I don't, it'll destroy both of us. The marriage he once knew will decompose, and then what does he have? At least now he can still have some happy memories." Isinia shrugged coldly, unable to do anything else. Her mind, hardened from captivity, was adamant. "I'm not the same as I was. I can barely feel anything, let alone love him."

"What the hell am I supposed to tell Doggie?" Kat asked, still angry with Isinia.

"Tell him just what I said," was all Isinia offered before continuing on.

Kat let out a heavy breath as the Sirian woman continued on as if everything were fine. The harsh stinging of Kat's hand reminded her that no matter much she wanted to go after her, it wouldn't change anything. She could argue and fight for her all she wanted, but Isinia was going to leave. "Dammit...dammit—DAMMIT!"

Blood began to drip but Kat clenched her fist. She couldn't tell Doggie, there was no way. She couldn't be the one to break his heart—how was she to tell him that his wife didn't love him anymore? This was just...it was all wrong. Kat wasn't even a particular advocate of their relationship, but she was a full supporter of Doggie Cruger.

When Isinia came back Kat couldn't help but be happy for her friend, even as she stewed in her own misery. Isinia was back, so Doggie had his wife, and he and Kat would...or wouldn't... There had been the occasional session of "stress relief" between the two of them. Doggie sometimes hit low points and Kat was only too willing to help him out. She always valued those times but Doggie never spoke of them, so she left it alone.

Honestly, the return of Isinia broke her heart, just a little. Of course, she was happy that Doggie was happy, but...well, in her heart of hearts, she still loved Doggie. She had fallen in love with him – completely out of her control – long ago. Now, though, she had to tell him that his wife was leaving him? The same wife for whom he had searched, and waited, and fought, for decades? This was not right.

"Kat, what's wrong?" Bridge asked, seeing Kat looking more distraught than he had ever seen her. Her hand was clenched in a tight fist but bleeding profusely. "What happened to your hand?!"

"Never mind it, Bridge," Kat tried to force a smile, shoving her hand behind her back. It still burned horribly. "I'm just on my way to the lab."

"Your lab is in the other direction Kat, now what's going on?" Bridge asked, entirely worried. He was pretty happy–go–lucky, but not stupid! "What was that scratch from?"

"I was just, being reckless," Kat waved off with her good hand, though she could see that Bridge wasn't having any of it. "It's okay, Bridge, really, I'm headed to check on some stuff."

Bridge continued to frown at Kat's vagueness. "Kat, this—"

"Kat!"

Kat spun around at Cruger, hand still behind her back. "Doggie, what's the problem?"

"I was just told that Isinia has left the perimeter. What happened?" he asked his friend, distressed over the sudden absence of his wife.

Kat stayed silent, face contorted in anguish. She couldn't do it—she couldn't tell him that Isinia left him without so much as a goodbye. "I...she left, Doggie."

"Why, where would she go?" he frowned. He knew things had not been great between him and Isinia but he truly thought they could work through it together. Isinia had been so distant since she got back, after the defeat of Omni. He was partly at fault as well, emotionally guarded as he was, but still, he didn't think it warranted leaving. "What made her leave?"

Kat shook her head and tried to muster any words but nothing came.

Doggie turned to Kat, now blind with distress and anger. "Did you tell her about us?"

Kat took only a second to recognize that this was her only chance. He would hate her, and she would hate herself, but at least it might hurt him less than Isinia had. "Y–yes, I–I'm sorry, Doggie, it just slipped out."

Cruger growled, blood hot under his scales. "Kat, I never took you to be so stupid!"

Kat winced at the rage in his voice as he barked at her. Her ears folded back as she backed up in submission. "I'm sorry, Doggie."

"Silence!" he roared. "Kat, you are fired! You will be gone from my sight by the end of the day or so help me Sirius I will kick you out myself!"

Kat swallowed back her tears at hearing her friend speak so harshly. Nodding, eyes squeezed shut, she whispered, "yes, sir."

"Dismissed," he spat out, fangs bared.

"Wait—" Bridge tried to interrupt but Kat stopped him, just before Cruger snapped his eyes over and growled at him. "Commander Cruger... "

"Would you like to join Doctor Manx in exile, Bridge?" he growled. Kat shoved Bridge behind her, head and ears bowed. "That's what I thought. Now, please escort _her_ out of my sight."

Kat withered inside at the disgust in Doggie's voice. "Bridge, trust me and leave it alone."

"Kat, this isn't right," Bridge tried to argue but Kat just ignored him and went into the security office. Sighing, he waved an ungloved hand around him. The residual auras still wavered in the air. Kat's was a swirling mass of pain, a darker, more steely green shade than normal. Cruger's aura was raging and uncontrollable, which made sense to Bridge, considering how unreasonable he had been. Another aura lingered, though. It was unfamiliar to Bridge. Mustering his concentration he picked up a purplish aura, cold, similar to Cruger's. Bridge gasped; "Kat! Kat, was this about Mrs. Cruger?!"

"Bridge," Kat addressed, dropping her voice low, holding a memory chip in her left hand while her right kept bleeding. "I'm leaving in an hour, Isinia can't be contacted, that's just how things are. Make sure Doggie takes care of himself and I'll...I'll try to keep in touch. You guys...don't fight too much, okay? Remember to look out for each other and...be good."

"Kat," Bridge tried to argue again but Kat laid her soft palm to his skin. He felt warmth and the aura of motherly love radiate into him.

"I love you all like my own kids. Be the best you can be, take care of the city, and Commander Cruger. I might see you again," she shrugged, trying to end on a positive note. Her smile was teary. "Take care, Bridge, and don't worry about me."

Bridge watched as Kat, the woman who had taken care of B–Squad like a mother, walked off. He could see her shoulders shaking, holding in her crying. Her right hand was still bleeding and her ears were still low. This wasn't right. Kat was one of their own, dammit! Turning and bouncing on his heel for just a second, Bridge ran to the B–Squad lounge. "Guys!—guys, we have a problem!"

"Whoa, Bridge, what's wrong?" Z asked, surprised to see Bridge in such a panic.

"Commander Cruger fired Kat."


	2. Point One - Miss Manx

_Point One – Miss Manx_

"Do not bring her up!"

B–Squad and Boom winced at Cruger's ferocity but stayed strong. Z looked up at him with patient eyes. "Please, sir, this isn't right. At least let us speak."

"I said no, and the next one to mention her or my wife will join Miss Manx in unemployment!" Cruger's back remained turned to them.

"Then I quit!"

At this, Cruger turned. Boom stood, looking on the verge of tears. "What was that?"

"If Kat's not here then I won't be either, effective immediately," Boom frowned at Cruger, face wrought with resentment. He stormed out, quickly followed by B–Squad. "I'm not gonna change my mind, guys."

"We know, I wouldn't either, honestly, I'd quit if I could, but I can't," Bridge rambled on for only a moment. "Before you quit, can you find where Kat has gone? I can't track her aura through the city, but maybe you can find her with the SPD satellite? I'm going to find her and make her tell us what's going on."

The rest of B–Squad seemed on board, and Boom nodded. "Right, I can do that. Let's see...she's in the bay district, at an apartment building."

"The bay district, that's an expensive place, is she visiting a friend?" Jack frowned.

"Nope, an apartment was just bought there under the name Manx, Katherine. Kat's fine, I mean, she's been working for, like, a hundred years or more, remember?" Boom turned to B–Squad with only half of his normal, frivolous smile. "Why would Kat let Cruger fire her like that? She's never been afraid to stand up to him before."

"Guys, I'm telling you, something was up." Bridge caught their attention. "I read the auras after everything went down. I think something happened with Missus Cruger that Kat wasn't telling him about. I couldn't read her thoughts, though, they were too...jumbled."

"Okay, so we go to Kat and ask her what happened," Z nodded to Jack.

"If she wouldn't tell Cruger why would she tell us?" Sky asked logically.

"The only reason she'd keep something from him would be to protect him, so she has nothing to lose," Syd argued to Sky's left.

"Okay, her apartment is only ten minutes from here." Boom lead the rangers with him out of the lab. "We'll take my car. I don't think Cruger would be happy to find out we were taking the delta runners to visit Kat...not that the bastard deserves any consideration."

Everyone exchanged sympathetic looks as Boom brooded over the loss of Kat. They knew she was like a mother or big sister to him, and Boom was never too happy when Kat was messed with. Bridge seconded the notion, sharing a similar relationship with her, especially considering how much time he spent in the lab.

They arrived at a regular looking, somewhat beat up car sitting in the far corner of the hangar. Boom clicked it open and sighed. "Kat souped it up for me after I bought it for visiting my parents more. The engine's top of the line."

Syd and Z looked at him with gentle smiles, patting his shoulders.

"This is a standard five person car, Boom, it's illegal for us all to pile in here," Sky frowned deeply.

"Just get in," Jack smirked, shoving Sky in the car and getting in behind him.

"Everybody in?" Boom asked. His question was answered by grumbling from Z, squished against Syd, who was sandwiched against Sky, who was pressed against Jack. "Okay, let's go."

"As I was saying, Kat wouldn't say what happened, but I also noticed her right hand was bleeding." Bridge said as he twisted around in his seat to address the other rangers. "It looked like a scratch mark."

"You think Kat fought Missus Cruger?" Z looked disbelieving at best.

"A Kat...cat–dog...girl fight?" Jack tried to work out in a vaguely Bridge way.

"It was a pretty deep looking claw mark," Bridge sighed unhappily.

"Why would Missus Cruger hurt Kat, though?" Sky asked after getting Syd's hair away from his mouth.

"Maybe she was jealous," Syd suggest in a strained voice, "I mean, Cruger and Kat are pretty close; well...were."

"I can't see her freaking out over that though. Do you think she just...left?" Z's question hung in the air heavily, making everyone fall silent. It was a dark suggestion but completely viable. "I mean, I know it's not cool, but it could happen. She was coming back after a hell of a lot, I'd need time to adjust, I imagine. Maybe Missus C. just wasn't adjusting to life on Earth. Wasn't she being held captive for, like, forty years?"

"Yeah, I guess I'd have a pretty hard time comin' back from that and just playing happy little house at base," Jack noted.

"Still, would she really leave just because of that? There must have been more," Sky tried to add.

"Maybe it's everything together," Bridge offered.

"Guys, we're here," Boom spoke up.

The group of adolescents walked up to the condo complex in awe. The building was white marble in foyer with whitewash stone walls. It looked more like a very private hotel than an apartment complex. Stepping into the foyer, they were met by two doormen and a blue skinned alien at the front desk.

"Excuse me," Sky began, not wanted to address it as sir or ma'am until he was sure. "We're looking for Miss Katherine Manx."

"Miss Manx has asked only certain people be permitted to see her," the alien responded with a voice that did nothing to suggest if it was a sir or ma'am.

"It's okay, Teo, I'll take them up."

The group turned to see Kat. She wore a flowing black skirt and white blouse, looking an awful lot like her lab coat. Her boots were black and she wore the gold bracelet around her left wrist, drawing attention from the bandaged right one. Her normally perfectly corkscrewed ringlets were left hanging looser around her, still bouncy, but resting on top of her shoulders. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We came for answers—"

"To visit you—"

"To ask—"

"I quit—"

Kat held up her hand, silencing her kids. Looking from Z, on the left, to Boom, on the right, she sighed. "Okay, you're here, you might as well come."

The six followed Kat to the stairs, no one wanting to point out that there was an elevator. Before continuing she turned to Bridge, who spoke: "Kat, they were worried, I—"

"Here," Kat said flatly, handing Bridge, Jack and Sky her bags of groceries. They were by no means heavy, and especially nothing she couldn't handle. Still, though, they were there, they might has well have made themselves useful. It was two bags of canned tuna, two things of mayo, three loaves bread and two cartons of milk. "So, you guys really came here in the middle of the day just to visit me?"

"Of course—"

"No—"

Sky and Jack scowled at each other before Sky rephrased. "We wanted to visit you, Kat, but to find out what's going on. We couldn't believe that Commander Cruger fired you."

"Well, he did, and I'm not going to talk about it," Kat answered evenly.

"I quit," Boom spoke quietly again, from the back of the group.

"I'm going to have a word with you about that, Boom," Kat turned sternly, continuing up the steps. She lived on the top floor – eight flights of stairs up – but she liked the exercise.

"Come on, Kat, we're worried," Syd puffed, wondering why they couldn't have taken the elevators.

"I appreciate the concern, kids, but I'm fine," Kat didn't look at them this time, feeling her eyes water. This had easily been the second worst day of her life and she really just wanted it to end.

"Kat, is there just tuna in here?" Jack asked, somewhat breaking through the tense air.

"Yep," she responded plainly. Finally, they reached her floor. "Okay, here we are."

"Whoa," the group gazed at Kat's lavish apartment. It was huge, and completely decadent. There was a sunken in living room, fully furnished on top of a rich red carpet. The white marble floors extended up to the kitchenette, dining area and balcony french doors. In the other direction they lead to the master bedroom, with its own bathroom, and guest bathroom.

"Kat, this place is gorgeous," Syd breathed, fully aware of what the lap of luxury had to offer. "What is this costing you?"

"Nothing substantial," Kat muttered to herself. She had been getting paychecks for longer than three times their respective ages, she was quite set to pay a couple thousand in rent and expenses. "Besides, I won't be here for too long."

"What do you mean?" Brdige frowned as he handed his bag of groceries to un unhappy Jack.

"I mean, once I have a new job, I'll be leaving. I've already contacted SPD Headquarters and Birdy was only too happy to have me back. I'd be provided with living conditions, still have access to a lab on the odd occasion and I could still help defend the galaxy. That's all I need." Kat tried to speak casually, as if it weren't the hardest call she had ever had to make in her life. Really, she hated the idea of going back there. It was her only option, though. She couldn't just lounge around a luxury apartment for the rest of her life (even if she wanted to, she'd outlive her landlord by centuries).

"You can't leave," Bridge stepped forward.

"It's done, Bridge. All I have to do is sign the hard copies of the documents and it will be finalized," Kat fibbed, considering that she could have given them a digital signature, but postponed for deliberation time.

"Kat, what really happened?" Sky asked gently, also handing off his bag of groceries to a disgruntled Jack.

Kat looked at the group, all worried. "All of you, sit."

The group obeyed and sat on the couch in the sunken living area. Kat followed them, leaning against a chair facing them.

"Isinia left."

"We know, but why?" Bridge asked with an edge in his voice.

"That's it, Bridge, she just left. I asked her myself and she said that she couldn't stay at base, with Doggie. It was destroying the happy memories of their marriage and it was only going to deteriorate from there." Kat scratched her forehead in stress.

"So, she just took a bag and wasn't even going to tell DC?" Z asked, cringing.

"Pretty much; I tried to stop her and," Kat waved her bandaged hand, which was showing signs of bleeding through. Cursing quietly she unwrapped it, revealing two nasty looking claw marks deep in her skin; "oh, dammit."

"Kat, that looks pretty bad," Syd frowned, eyeing the angry red of the scratch marks.

Bridge squinted, "that's a nasty open wound, Kat."

"I know, I know," she muttered, going for new gauze. "I disinfected it but Sirian claws have a coating to them that can poison any non–Sirian skin it pierces."

"Poison?" Jack looked alarmed. "You have to see a doctor, Kat."

"I am a doctor, technically; I chose to go with engineering over medicine as my major. Anyway, there's nothing I can do about it. The only thing that will cure it is the saliva of a Sirian," Kat muttered to herself as she wrapped her hand carefully. "I can only ride it out."

"If it can kill you this is not going to be argued over," Sky holds out a firm hand.

"It's not in your control, Sky, and I'm not going to die from it. My blood can counteract any foreign substance that gets into my system, including this. I might be sick for a couple days, but that's it." What Kat wasn't telling them was that, while she would survive, it would be a close call. She would get a dangerously high fever, have violent bouts of vomiting and lose a lot of blood in it. The coughing from her lungs fighting the poison would take its toll on her vascular system and she wouldn't be able to move for a few days. She would survive, though. "Anyway, there's nothing more to it, and I am not going back to the command center."

"Kat, I know you're both stubborn, you can't just not tell Commander Cruger that his wife left him," Bridge tried to argue logically. "Taking the blame for her isn't solving anything."

"Bridge, how do you propose I tell me best friend that his wife up and left him because she's too numb to feel anything? How do you think I should tell him that she said that she doesn't love him anymore? I'd love to know if you have an idea on how I should even begin to approach this," Kat frowned and shifted her weight on her hips. "There's nothing anyone can do."

B–Squad sat, helpless, looking at Kat. Jack stood, "there has to be something we can do!"

"There isn't," Kat came very close to snapping at him. "Doggie hates me, I'm going to HQ to work and that is the end of the story."

"What about that chip you took from security?" Bridge intervened as Kat tried to walk away from them. "It has the security footage of your fight, doesn't it? That's why you took it?"

"Yes," Kat admitted, meeting Bridge's eyes easily, "and it's staying here with me."

"Kat," Boom tried to speak, but when she turned he knew that look in her eyes.

"Boom, you are going to go back there and take back your resignation, or so help me Felia I will shut down every piece of technology you own," Kat pointed at him sternly.

"I need you there, Kat," Boom admitted pitifully. "I can't do anything without you."

Kat ruffled Boom's hair, "you'll be fine, Boom, just promise me you'll go back."

"Fine," he moped, slumping into the couch.

"Good, now," Kat looked at her kids and steeled her resolve, "all of you: go _home_."


	3. Point Two - Mister Cruger

_Point Two – Mister Cruger_

"Where were you all?" Cruger asks, less aggravated than before but still not happy.

"Just out," Z shrugged.

"I apologize, Commander Cruger," Boom stepped forward.

"For what?" he asked.

"I don't really know," Boom scowled.

"Regardless, you never filed a resignation form," Curger frowned down at Boom.

"Fine, I'm still working here," Boom all but scoffed and shuffled out of the room.

"Rangers, you're dismissed," Cruger turned his back to them.

"Yes, sir," Sky muttered, following out Jack and having to bring Bridge by the arm.

Cruger sighed to himself once they were gone. He had felt nothing but misery, regret and guilt for how he had lashed out at Kat. Even if she had told Isinia that they had been together, it wasn't a reason for him to fire her, let alone take out his stress on her.

Isinia coming back had been a blessing, he had thought in the beginning. He had his wife back! Although he had felt badly that he never talked with Kat properly over their "get togethers". He had sought her out for comfort, her being his most trusted companion. That eventually turned into five separate occasions of stress release. They never talked about it but he was afraid to think too much into them. Surely Kat had suitors lining up for her outside of the command center. He was just a stubborn, old dog...

Then Isinina came back, and he thought he had his wife back. She was different, though. The first few days were all right, covered over with celebration, but when she refused to let him touch her, he had wondered. Then, he discovered, that she couldn't even look at him. He wasn't all that available either, in retrospect. He was too used to being a workaholic Commander, guarded all the time, to be there for his wife. Not that she had made an effort to reach out to him. They were both broken, the two of them, completely different people from who they were before the Troobian destruction. It was an impossible situation but he thought they could try to work it out. There were therapies and treatments they could try.

She left, though, and he still couldn't really figure out why. At the time, he had believe she left because of something Kat said, but that didn't make any sense. Not only would Kat never be stupid enough to say something – oh, gracious, he had called her stupid – but Isinia surely wouldn't leave just because of that. He really had no idea.

"Cruger, come in, Cruger," came a voice from the console.

"Oh, no," Cruger sighed before seeing the image of Birdy come on screen. "What?"

"Oh, cranky from the incident today with Doctor Manx?" Birdy mocked openly.

"What the hell are you talking about," Cruger growled.

"Well, never fear, she'll be well taken care of. Now, she has no reason to go back to you. Doctor Manx called me today telling me that her employment under you 'had been terminated'", Birdy held up air quotes. "So, I invited her back here to be my head technician in the engineering department. She'll be given the finest accommodations and once she has been on my payroll for at least a year I can promote her to the rank she deserves: Technologies and Engineering Commander."

Doggie growled at Birdy, though he was fully aware that Kat deserved the best rank in her field. She deserved the best in most fields, but as Technical Commander, she would literally control every branch of SPD in terms of their technology. It had been specifically designed for someone who had complete control over both fields. Doggie had suggested its creation himself, with Kat in mind. "Yes, that's very nice, Birdy."

"In all seriousness, Cruger, I was wondering what happened," Birdy said solemnly. "I know we're not exactly friends, but it was worrying to find out that the best asset to any SPD base had been fired?"

Cruger sighed and decided he had nothing to lose: "I...made a mistake, today."

"You could get her back, you know," Birdy started uncharacteristically. "Instead of giving us a digital signature on her final contract, she asked to be sent hard copies for time to deliberate."

"Why would she hesitate, you're offering her everything she could ask for in her career?" Cruger frowned at Birdy.

"We don't have you," the old pelican sneered. "Look, Cruger, as much as I'd like to have Manx on my staff here, the last time she came she was positively miserable without you and your ranger tots. I know she'd rather be there, so, if you can convince her to come back to you before our papers show up, she's all yours. If she signs our contract, though, there's no going back."

"Why are you telling me this, Birdy?" Cruger sighed and scowled simultaneously.

"I've been feeling generous lately," Birdy shrugged at Cruger. "Again, I know we're not friends, but we might as well try to be, and I'm genuinely fond of Miss Manx; I prefer her over you, at least."

"Very funny, you overstuffed Pelican," Cruger laughed genuinely. "Well, I appreciate it, Fowler."

"Just don't take her for granted, Cruger," and with that, Birdy signed out of the weirdest conversation either he or Cruger had ever had.

Cruger let it sit with him. He had taken Kat for granted, in more ways than one. He had seen the return of his wife as an all encompassing problem solver, as if that would undo the last five decades. Maybe he had fooled himself into thinking that if he could love Isinia the same as before, it would heal the pain he had felt for all these years. It didn't, though, and now he was more miserable than before. At least he had Kat before.

Pulling up a dialing pad on the console he typed in a number he knew like his own name. A ringing noise came, then a voice mail: "You've reached Doctor Katherine Manx, SPD branch 20XXDelta125NTCC, please leave a message, and I'll try to get back to you."

He sighed: even on her civilian cell phone line, she was professional. He missed her voice.

He missed her. Her absence left things hollow and cold feeling. There was no gentle scent of lilac and vanilla to waft gently under his snout. Her voice no longer bounced off the walls in its rich, saturated tones. There was no head of chestnut curls for him to see in his periphery. Her eyes were no where he could see. Her entirely comforting presence was entirely absent.

Without thinking he dialed again and got the same message. After a beep he tried not to stutter, "Kat, it, uh, it's Doggie... I'm, um...I'm sorry...for today. It was out of line, for me to fire you and take out my stresses on you. I shouldn't have lashed out at you and I'm sorry... I miss you... I guess that wasn't very professional... well, um, I should...go...I suppose. Again, I, uh, apologize, for earlier today. Um...take care...of yourself...g'bye."

Hanging up, he massaged his tired eyes. Normally, Kat would have made him stop working by now, but... He couldn't go on like this, he knew, even with his stubbornness. Still, if she wanted to take the job at HQ who was he to stop her? Apparently she wasn't happy about it, but...oh, dammit all. Sighing, he made his way to his quarters with two things in mind: call Kat, find Isinia.


	4. Point Three - Missus Cruger

_Point Three – Missus Cruger_

"Doggie," a voice called.

Cruger spun on his heel in surprise. The past day and a half had been miserable and uneventful. The rangers refused to speak with him past business, Boom all but hated him, and Kat never did return the message he had left her. "Isinia?—where have you been?"

"Doggie, I must apologize," she sighed. She followed him to a bench as he gestured to sit. "When I left, I'm afraid I didn't give proper thought to you, and I'm sorry about that. In my panic to escape how I was feeling I blatantly neglected to consider you."

"Isinia—" Doggie began but was cut off.

"Please, let me get this all out. I've done some thinking the past two days. I had been having issues since I returned. At first, it was fine, but as things settled back into a sense of normalcy here, I found myself out of place. I was finding a dramatic change of environment, after spending years in Troobian captivity. Not only that, but I'm afraid that you and I are just too different from the people we were before Sirius fell. I am not at all the same woman you married those decades ago, and you are not the same man. I know you want to be, because you are a good man, Anubis, but you can't. We have spent the last fifty years apart, Doggie, to think we'd be the same would be foolish." Isinia took a steady breath and looked into her husband's eyes. "I don't recognize your eyes when I look into them and you don't recognize mine. I've sealed myself off for forty plus years, and I can see you have done the same, to an extent. It's wrong to, though. You have good people here with you, Doggie."

"You're here," he said helplessly, at a loss for what to say next.

"Not in the way you need me to be," Isinia shook her head. "We can't do this, Anubis. We have changed too much to stay like this. We're not happy, being married to memories of how we used to be."

Against the part of him that screamed for him to be a "good husband" he sighed and nodded. "I suppose in some way, I know you're right."

"I'm sorry, Doggie," Isinia reached a hand towards his muzzle but stopped, feeling them both tense at the thought of the action. "See?—we're just not comfortable with each other."

"I suppose, I still wish there was something I could do though," Doggie sat forward again. "If it's any consolation, Kat was only helping me out as a friend. She doesn't feel that way about me."

"What?—you and Katherine?" Isnia looked surprised.

"Yes, she told you," Doggie said in the affirmative but Isinia still looked confused. "She told me that she let it slip that we had been together, and that was why you left."

"Doggie, I had the idea to leave before then, she just happened to run into me and tried to stop me," Isinia corrected, still looking surprised. For the first time in weeks, a smile cracked on her muzzle. "So, you and the young Felid lady?"

"A couple of times," Doggie nodded numbly. Kat had lied to him? Of course she had—she had thought she was protecting him. This only made him more of an ass. "I've made a horrible mistake."

"What?" Isinia asked, feeling at ease with her husband for the first time in literally ages.

"I fired Kat when she told me you left. I wasn't thinking straight," Isinia smacked the end of his snout, making him yelp. "Gah!—I said I made a mistake!"

"Damn right, you did, that young lady loves you, Doggie," Isinia laughed a bit, thinking how ironic it was that she was telling her husband of the love of another woman. "She loves you and you love her."

"I told you, she doesn't feel that way about me," Doggie mumbled, rubbing his sore nose.

"You feel that way about her, though, and don't try and deny it for my sake, please," surprisingly, Doggie didn't object, but just looked forward intensely. "If you feel guilty because we're still technically married, don't."

"I just...I don't know," Doggie attempted.

"I know, and I guess I can relate. This is just the way things are, I suppose. You love Katherine, she loves you, and you and I are...friends," Isinia met Doggie's eyes if a bit timidly.

"Yes, I would like that," he nodded. "What will you do now?"

"I'm going to look into trauma centers I heard were stationed all over the galaxy for victims of the Troobian campaigns. I should get treatment, and when I heal, I can help there. I'm still a nurse," Isinia smiled, settling into the bench more comfortably now. "We can sign...is it dissolve papers?"

"Divorce papers," Doggie corrected. "You sign them, then send me my copies and it can be done with immediately. We can keep in touch."

"Yes, we can," Isinia stood and smiled at her soon to be exhusband for the last time. "Good luck, Doggie. I hope you do well, here. Take care of yourself, and the young lady, Kat."

"Goodbye, Isinia," Doggie smiled, still on the bench as she walked away. Something inside him came to rest, as if a storm had brewed inside of him and he hadn't noticed until now, when it ceased. He felt at peace, in a surreal kind of way. Then he realized something. "B–Squad, I don't believe spying is in the cadet manual."

"Morning, sir," Z was the only one to greet him as they emerged from the shrubs behind the bush.

"Rangers, I have several apologies to make, first to you, and also to Boom, and most of all, Kat." Cruger nodded, willing to concede that he was wrong...in this particular instance. "Isinia told me that Kat never actually told her about us. I have made a horrible mistake, but while I tried contacting Kat, she won't return my calls. B–Squad, Kat has been sent a contract by Head Quarters for a job position that would lead to a permanent rank. If she signs that contract, we've lost her forever. Would you be willing to...?"

"We'll get her back, sir," Jack nodded.

"Thank you, rangers, and I am very sorry," he sighed.

"Forgiven, sir," Sky cracked a carefully measured smile.

"Please...bring her back," Cruger's voice softened considerably.


	5. Two Sides of A Triangle

_Two Sides of a Triangle_

"Kat?" Syd called, poking her head through the door to the apartment. There was no sign of her. "Kat, it's us, we want to talk."

Although still no answer came, they could hear something. It was a deep, distant mumbling sound.

"I think it's coming from the kitchen," Sky tapped Syd on the shoulder.

"Kat," Z called, getting a little worried.

The rangers went to the kitchen and found Kat, sitting on the floor with her legs spread in front of her. A blanket sat around her messily as a cocoon. Her face was flushed with a fever, a sheen on her brow. She held a cell phone in her hands.

"_Kat, it, uh, it's Doggie... I'm, um...I'm sorry...for today. It was out of line, for me to fire you and take out my stresses on you. I shouldn't have lashed out at you and I'm sorry... I miss you... I guess that wasn't very professional... well, um, I should...go...I suppose. Again, I, uh, apologize, for earlier today. Um...take care...of yourself...g'bye." _

Kat stared at the screen blankly and played the message again.

"Kat?" Jack frowned at the catatonic (no pun intended) looking woman. "Are you okay?"

Once the message played out Kat went to play it again but Bridge's hand stopped her. Finally, she look up, "he called me."

Bridge smiled, seeing a little bit of the Kat they knew and loved. "I know. Do you know what happened today?"

"What?" she asked innocently as Bridge sat himself down next to her.

"Isinia came by and apologized in person for leaving. She and the Commander had a talk and she told him how you never told her about you guys. By the way—ew, how long was that going on?" Bridge scrunched his face.

"Bridge," Z snapped.

"Right, anyway, he wanted us to come here since you hadn't returned his call," Bridge nodded towards the cell phone in her hands.

"I...I missed his voice so much, but I never got around to calling him." Kat laughed at herself a bit and brushed some hair from her eyes. "I didn't know...I mean he said he missed me, but I didn't know if... "

"Kat, what is this?" asked Sky, kicking some ashes scattered around her open flame stove.

"The contract from HQ," said Kat, shocking everyone. "I couldn't sign them."

"Kat, DC's dying to see you. He sent us here to get you." Z kneeled by her friend. Seeing the redness of her cheeks touched a hand to her forehead. With a hiss she recoiled, nursing her hand, "Kat, you're on fire."

"The fever has started," Kat murmured, pulling her blanket around her again.

"Kat, you have to come with us," Bridge didn't hesitate to gather Kat in his arms, blanket and all. She weighed next to nothing (not to mentioned he threw a CAR one time). "Don't worry, Kat, Cruger will take care of you."

Kat drifted in and out on the way back to the command center, dreaming fitfully of awful confrontations between her and Doggie. "Mm...what's going on?"

"Kat, are you okay?" asked the voice of Doggie Cruger.

"Doggie?" she asked, dazed.

Cruger took the blanket from her right hand and gasped, as did B–Squad. On her hand and encroaching up her wrist were large, wide open wounds, festering with Sirian venom. The angry, agitated red around the marks told him they had been made about two days ago. "How did this happen?"

"I looked at the security footage Kat cut out of the tapes; I think your wife—erm, exwife scratched her, sir." Bridge frowned, reading Kat's aura.

"Kat, can you hear me?" Doggie asked, finding Kat turning to face him. He smiled at the comforting sight. "Hi... "

"Hi," she said in a breathy voice.

"You're gonna be okay, Kat," Doggie laid a kiss to the heated skin of her hand before letting his tongue glide over the cuts.

Kat took in a breath before sighing as the pain edged away from the cuts on her hand. Her fever died down immediately and she could feel her vitality returning. Doggie's tongue glided over the cuts, sealing them up almost instantly. Once he was done he laid another kiss to her skin and held her hand in his.

"Kat, I'm so sorry, about everything," Doggie shook his head, holding her hand tight.

"It's okay, Doggie," Kat smiled, feeling completely well, and a little light headed from the feeling of his tongue on her skin. "Consider it in the past."

"That's something I can't do, because there's something I never addressed properly," before Kat could over–rationalize anything he leaned in, taking her lips in his. He placed one hand at the back of her head, in her curls, and the other behind her back. She responded positively, and he felt a rumbling against him; she was purring. After a moment he released her slowly, making sure she knew how much he wanted it to go on. Looking at her sparkling eyes and flushed cheeks his smiled a bit. "Am I forgiven?"

Kat found herself unable to form words, but simply nodded with a dreamy smile on her face. "Mm...oh, yes, Doggie, you are...entirely forgiven."

"Yay!" Syd cheered, though the moment proceeding it made her quiet. "I think it's time for us to leave."

"I think so too," Kat smiled, nodding at Bridge as they scuffled out.

"I really am sorry, Kat," Doggie said quietly, serious again.

"Hush, Doggie, it's not important. It was a huge misunderstanding, no help on my part, but it's all okay now." Kat toyed with Doggie's hand as she spoke, looking at him intently. "I'm sorry I lied to you. It wasn't my place to interfere, but I just didn't want you to be hurt."

"Kat, don't apologize. The past few days have been trying for everyone, I just want you to rest." Cruger smoothed Kat's hair back tenderly. "I'm sorry I never addressed our relationship properly. I figured you had better offers than a stubborn, old dog—"

Kat launched herself at the man, fitting her knees at his hips. His hands found her rear in support as she kissed him madly. "You...silly...dog...I...love...you... "

"I love you, too," Cruger laughed, breaking from Kat's ravishing for a breath. "To bed?"

Kat smiled sheepishly. Doggie adjusted her in his arms and carried her to his room. Laying her on his bed, like he had done five times before, he smiled. "I do love you."

"I love you too," she whispered up at him, touching his muzzle.

Doggie reveled in the touch, remembering how Isinia had tried but it only made him flinch. "Katherine...all those times...I wish I could have told you then that I loved you."

"Sh," Kat shushed and pressed her lips to his. "You have to stop apologizing."

"I can try," he sighed and gave into his love.


End file.
